Chapter 698: Chapter 394, The Choice of Flying Wing Star
Although seemingly similar, after joining the Alliance, Hongjian Star could still manage its own agricultural conglomerates and farms and could decide the inheritance of these properties according to their own will.
But in reality, the landowners on Hongjian Star paid a hefty price.
Nominally, their achievements, their respective companies, now all fall under the supervision of the Alliance. Even their originally self-organized, loosely structured government that at best played a mere auxiliary role, would be replaced by the Alliance Government following its dissolution. The past model of planet management, which mainly relied on the autonomy of farm owners, would henceforth be gone forever. The rudimentary farm militia, which hardly counted as a force, would be completely disbanded, replaced by direct garrisons of the Alliance Army.
In essence, they had put a noose around their own necks and handed the other end over to the Alliance. From now on, if the Alliance wished, it could easily strangle any farm owner or agricultural conglomerate at any time.
They would have no capacity to resist.
Of course, they had anticipated this situation. After all, they were the ones who had proposed these terms to the Alliance.
…
Inside Hongjian Star, there was no lack of opposition.
However, these objections had already been resolved internally in advance.
The thought process behind their decision was actually quite smooth.
First of all, it was very simple for the mighty Alliance to obliterate Hongjian Star. With powerful military might, the legitimacy that the Star Sector leaders held, along with the influence the Gu Family head possessed over interstellar trade… The methods of obliteration were varied, ranging from forceful to peaceful, from civilized to barbaric.
In any case, one would still need to kneel down to preserve one’s life; why not negotiate favorable terms in advance while everything on Hongjian Star still held value and was a bargaining chip worth something.
This was the condition they could negotiate after considering their options.
Were they ever completely carefree in the past? Not really.
The situation on Hongjian Star was generally stable for many years, but occasionally, there would be farm owners going bankrupt and agricultural conglomerates downsizing. Under market competition, they had their own mechanism for clearing out those who poorly managed, making them leave their undeserved positions.
Now, instead of the invisible hand of market competition, it was the visible hands of the Alliance Government exercising control.
They paid a price, but they would also reap rewards.
The Alliance made a promise that, despite taking over the power of Hongjian Star, they didn’t have much interest in majorly altering the status quo. Maintaining the appearance of an agricultural planet here was not a problem.
The Alliance had no plans to make massive investments on Hongjian Star, but merely by increasing exports of agricultural machinery, implementing agricultural technology reforms, and expanding and optimizing the Starport on Hongjian Star… these measures were already enough to bring substantial benefits to the landowners there.
They came reluctantly and left with concerns; however, over the following years, they would feel the warmth of the Alliance and rejoice at having made the right decision.
Gu Hang also issued instructions that for planets which voluntarily submit and fully accept the Alliance’s restructuring, the Alliance should grant them preferential treatment.
It’s not about economic aid — of course, mutual exchange and progress are necessary. More importantly, they needed political support. For these shrewd farm owners, the Alliance would ensure their status, positions, and wealth would not decline as much as possible.
It was essential to create a vivid example; if in the future there were other planets that wanted to join the Alliance voluntarily, having such a positive precedent would alleviate many doubts and make the Alliance’s path much smoother.
…
Compared to the preferential treatment for Hongjian Star, Gu Hang was not as gentle with Flying Wing Star.
Gu Hang had met with the ‘Governor’ of Hongjian Star at the Tianma Palace on Flying Wing Star, where he accepted their membership.
And the reason for selecting this location was naturally because it was the office location of the Tianma leaders.
With a population of eight billion and a development level of five, how did Flying Wing Star manage to pay the annual 4 billion Imperial Tax?
Mostly through the shipbuilding industry, and among the remaining part, a considerable portion relied on various tax incentives and reductions, being exempt or paid in other forms.
This ‘other form of payment’ implicated many intricacies.
Within it were several major items, such as paying on behalf of the Star Sector Government for office personnel, expenses for office resources.
The personnel of the Star Sector Government naturally needed income and salaries, which were to come from the Imperial Finance; they also required official premises, vehicles equipped for the Star Sector Government, ships capable of interstellar jumps, cranium skulls for processing data necessary for official duties…
This was a significant sum of money.
Even the entire Tianma Palace was built for the Star Sector Government, taking over a decade to create a garden-style palace intended for governmental office use, totaling more than one billion Tax Currency, funded by the Empire;
While not overly numerous, the operational staff of the Star Sector Government sometimes saw senior clerks earning dozens or even hundreds of Tax Currency annually, far exceeding the average person’s income level.
Besides, there was the Tianma Naval Academy, which also consumed Imperial finances, training naval talent for the Empire, and funnelling them into the Tianma Fleet.